Losing Isn't Everything
by Sandstorm3D
Summary: One-shot. Buttercup has been preparing her team for the championship match all season long and it's finally in sight. This year they were going to win!...Of course, that was before she learned who was coaching the other team. Sure, they'd still win but she might end up in jail for homicide before this was all over.


Losing isn't Everything

_Buttercup's POV_

_Friday_

"Hustle kids! Hustle!" The shrill sound of Buttercup's whistle echoed across the field and spurred her Peewee field hockey team onward.

Yeah, yeah, she was a coach, as in teaching little kids to play sports. She still couldn't believe it herself. It kind of weirded her out if she thought about it too much.

This was her third year of coaching and in her humble opinion, the best. When she had first been shoved into this whole coaching gig by the Professor, she had been resigned to hours of boredom and death by whiny kids. Imagine her surprise to find that she actually enjoyed it.

Peewee field hockey was so much more fun than say soccer or football. The kids weren't as much of crybabies and the parents weren't fanatics. Everyone just came out to have fun and push each other into the dirt. What wasn't fun about that?

Bottom line, it wasn't as awful as she thought it would be.

Did it require her to give up her weekends? Yeah, but she didn't do much on them to begin with. Video games got boring after a while and she couldn't join any sports leagues due to "unfair advantages." So this was as good a use of her free time anything else. Plus it was a good outlet for her "excessive aggressiveness," whatever that meant.

None of that mattered at the moment however. Her focus should have been on her players, not random thoughts floating about her head.

This was their last practice before the big championship game on Sunday and she had to make sure they were ready. They were undefeated and she intended for them to stay that way. This was the year! This year, that trophy was theirs!

No ifs, ands, or buts about it.

"There you go Hasib! Way to work the field!" Buttercup shouted encouragement as she clapped her hands. "I think we're close to done for the day. Let's wrap it up!"

The six bedraggled youths closed in around her, out of breath but sporting happy grins just the same. Buttercup returned their smiles with an ease born from familiarity. After all, she didn't smile for just anyone. It took a lot to get one from her but these kids had earned it.

"Good work today team. You're all looking really great out there. That championship is practically in the bag."

"Didja see the way I stole the ball from Kobe? Huh? Didja?" The smallest member of the team piped up excitedly.

The Green Puff tried to stifle a smirk as it threatened to rise upon her face. "Yes I did Andria. And as a coach, regulations require me to tell you all that tripping is expressly forbidden during games."

The child shrunk back at her coach's chastisement. Buttercup let her stew on that for a few seconds more before allowing the smirk to finally surface.

"…but since this is just practice…that was totally wicked!"

A grin burst to life on the little tyke's face so bright that it rivaled the sun. And that's what Buttercup loved most about kids. No matter the situation, you always knew where you stood with them. They wore their heart on their sleeve and if there was something bugging them, they came out right and told you…usually very loudly and with a lot of tears.

But despite that, Buttercup could appreciate their blunt honesty. If only all the rest of the adult world followed suit.

The Green Puff reached down and ruffled the girl's hair. "Just don't pull those moves out on the real field got it? I don't want you to be pulled because of unnecessary roughness alright?"

Andria gave her a nod and the brunette left it at that. Her kids knew what to do. Most of them had been with her these last three seasons. They were like a well-oiled machine, efficient, quick, powerful, and most importantly victorious.

"So, you all know what to do for Sunday right?" Various nods answered her question and all of the kids seemed to zone out a bit.

She had been over this a hundred times already but she was their coach and it was her prerogative to nag them to death about it. And she was going to take that prerogative.

"Drink plenty of water, get lots of sleep, and for heaven's sake don't-" The brunette cut herself off as a multitude of high pitched voice caught her ear.

And one _not_ so high pitched but very familiar all the same.

"Alright ya hooligans, stop nattering my ear off and your as-ahhh butts onto that field. Yeah, to the fi-what the hell?"

Buttercup couldn't keep her mouth from dropping open at the sight of her mortal enemy standing less than twenty feet away with a pack of kids surrounding him. Those kids also happened to be dressed in little practices jerseys, as in _field hockey_ practice jerseys.

All it all, it took about six seconds for her to take in the scene and process everything. Her reaction was less than professional.

"What the crap are you doing here?!" She blurted out, pointing a finger straight at him.

Butch looked just as flabbergasted as she was. "What am I doing here? What the hell are you doing here?!"

Both ignored the giggles and gasps alike from the kids surrounding them. She probably should have felt bad about cursing in front of impressionable young children but at this particular moment, that was the farthest thing from her mind. Instead, all her focus was on the jerk face in front of her.

A glare creased her brow as the Green Puff stepped up to her nemesis and growled. "I'm coaching."

"You? Coaching what? How to get your ass handed to you? Cause that's about all you excel at." Butch's comment had her already gritting her teeth together but she was in front of her kids. She couldn't deck him or the fight could escalate into something much more destructive and one of these kids might get hurt.

Needless to say, that was no bueno.

"No, I'm coaching Peewee field hockey. And I'm teaching them to win as evident by our seven and oh record. Now that I've answered your question like a civilized person, what the crap are you doing here?"

She took a moment to glance at the kids around his feet. "Don't tell me you're baby sitting or something? Who the hell would willingly let _you_ near their children?"

He huffed in response, crossing his arms across his chest. "Look who's talking. You couldn't take care of a hamster let alone a child. And for your information, no, I'm not babysitting. _I'm_ coaching…well I suppose that's kind of like babysitting but that's beside the point!"

"_You're _a coach?" Buttercup choked out in disbelief.

She couldn't have heard that right. Her ears must have been deceiving her, and her eyes, and every single one of her senses because there was no way in the whole, entire world that Butch could be a coach to a bunch of little kids. No freaking way!

This was a dream. It had to be. There was no other explanation for it.

"Yes, Butterbut I'm a coach of Peewee field hockey as well." He sniffed.

"And the league actually allowed that? You've got to be joking. There's no way." She argued as she took a step back.

"There is a way and it happened, so deal with it." He then glanced away and muttered under his breath.

All Buttercup could catch was something about a 'minor offense' and 'stupid ass community service.' It was enough for her to fit the pieces together in her mind. They didn't display a pretty picture however.

What judge in their right mind would put a Ruff, _a Ruff_, in charge of a bunch of little impressionable kids? Sure, the Boys hadn't been villains in a long time but they weren't saints either! That was for sure. Whoever had doled out this community service was an idiot.

And whoever allowed their kids on his team was an even bigger one. Buttercup felt sorry for those poor kids under his watch.

"Now if you're done spacing out and looking stupid, we have the field from six til seven. So get out. We have a championship match to prep for." Butch continued as he looked back at her.

Once more Buttercup found herself chocking on air. "_What?! _You're in the championship match? No, that's not possible! We're in the championship match and we're playing the Smithston Smashers."

Butch jabbed a thumb at his jersey which held the Smasher's logo on it's chest, a cocky smirk turning his lips. "And that's my team."

No.

Freaking.

Way!

What the hell?! This wasn't a dream, it was a freaking nightmare! Gah! What did she do to deserve this?!

As the brunette stood there and sputtered incoherently, Butch took the opportunity to push her rough aside and march his way out onto the field. "Out of the way for the champs losers."

Oh that was it! Buttercup ceased her useless indignations and grabbed onto the one emotion that never steered her wrong. Pure anger.

"Best find a decent chiropractor Butch, cause you and your sorry team are getting crushed on Sunday yah hear? Just wait and see. You'll be trounced so badly you'll never be able to show your face again!"

Okay, maybe that was bit overboard for her rated PG audience but she was pissed man. She couldn't help herself, and that loser comment didn't help.

Him? A coach? What sort of sick joke was this? She seriously couldn't believe the bad luck being dumped upon her. Not only did she have to see his ugly face on Sunday but now she'd have to be _civil_ to him too? Gah!

Butch didn't respond as he started ordering his kids to line up for drills. A huff blew between her lips as Buttercup glared at the cretin one more time before turning around. She led her group of kids off the field and out into the parking lot as they waited for their parents to come pick them up.

It was about that time that her children, who had been surprisingly quiet during her and Butch's exchange, finally opened up the flood gate. A tide of questions assaulted her as they stood there and for the first time in a long time, Buttercup was wished they would just shut up.

"Who was that?"

"Why was he so mean?"

"Does he know his hair sticks up all funny?"

"Are you guys like enemies or something?"

"Is his name really Butch? That sounds weird."

Buttercup raised her hands for quiet and her children obeyed after a little cajoling. They looked up at her with those big, puppy dog eyes and she knew right away that she wasn't getting out of this without answering some of their questions.

"Yes, his name is Butch and yes, it is stupid. We were enemies before he 'turned good' and he's just mean cause he's stupid." She answered quick fire before slamming a fist into her palm. "But none of that matters right now. All that matters is that we win on Sunday. We have to! This is like, the most important thing ever."

One of her kids raised his hand hesitantly and blanched when she turned her heated gaze towards him. "But-..but I thought you said the most important thing was to go out and have fun coach?"

Oh…uh…

"Well, um yeah of course it is. But this is the championship game and winning that trophy is what we've been working for all season right?"

A couple of little nods answered her.

"Those Smithston Smashers have had this coming to them for a long time and that coach of theirs definitely needs to be knocked down a peg or two. So! For tomorrow, winning is the most important thing okay?"

The group of children looked at each other with unsure glances before they shrugged off her odd behavior and agreed. It was probably wrong of her to push this agenda on them but seeing Butch and hearing his snide voice had awakened a fiercer side of the brunette, one she thought long gone.

Turns out all she needed to reawaken that fighting spirit of hers was for the appearance of one moronic ass. No matter. Come Sunday, she and her team would clean the floor with him and then they'd see who the better coach was.

Not that there was any contest to begn with. The obvious choice was standing right here.

One by one, the kids' parents came and picked them up. As the last one waved goodbye to her and drove off, Buttercup let her smile drop. Turning back around, she saw her nemesis from across the parking lot barking out orders to his field of players.

Yep, no contest.

With that, Buttercup took off and flew home. Thoughts of Sunday and Butch's upcoming trouncing lulled her to sleep easily that night.

LINEBREAK

_Sunday_

"Yeah! There ya go! Keep it up!" Buttercup shouted through her hands as the cheers of the crowd hooted and hollered their approval.

That score for her team had shot them up ahead of the Smithston Smashers and she couldn't have been more ecstatic about it. The match had going on for a while and the end of the game was looming over head.

Unfortunately, much to Buttercup's displeasure, it had been a knock out, drag down fight for first place. Butch's team came surprisingly prepared and that caught her off guard. Seriously, the guy couldn't even buy a bag of groceries without messing it up somehow. How the hell did he coach kids into actually being a formidable foe?

The thought was lost on her as another play stole the ball from Hasib and sent her heart up into her throat. No, no, no! They had just gotten ahead! They couldn't let lose their lead already.

"Hustle kids! Get that ball!"

"Come on Johnny! Drive it home!" Butch called out right after her, drawing her glare.

The bastard and her had been trading words and rather inappropriate gestures all game long. She felt a little terrible about setting a bad example should any of her kids witness her behavior, but they hadn't been caught yet so yeah. Besides, Butch had been the one to antagonize her!

The moment they arrived on the field he had been nothing short of insufferable, running around spouting about how he and his team were the clear winners here. He also threw in some choice words about her coaching ability and general lack of hygiene, which wasn't true like _at all_.

So if she flipped him off a time or six, he totally deserved it. After this was all over she might just go and deck him. Out of sight of course, maybe as he walked to his car.

Wait, those were thoughts that a mugger had. Dammit. See what he was doing to her? Just being around him infected her with evil thoughts. That boy was a menace to society.

Unfortunately, he seemed to be God's gift to Peewee field hockey. At least, he'd claim so. If it were any other person, she might have agreed a little bit. Despite his glaring flaws, his team was playing really well and that pissed her off.

This was her and her team's year dammit! And Butch had to come and mess up their easy win of the championship. Wasn't that just like him?

A collective 'ohhhhh' from the crowd drew Buttercup's attention back to the field. The little kid on Butch's team, Johnny supposedly, had made a hard press towards the goal. But Hasib and Andria hadn't been about to let that happen.

She turned back just in time to catch the three kids colliding head on and flying apart. It was a hit that one only saw in a real hockey match and it had her wincing something fierce. They crumpled to the ground and didn't get back up.

In a flash, quite literally, Buttercup was across the field and kneeling over her injured players. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed another, darker green flash but she didn't glance up to check. Her only focus was on her kids right now.

"Hey, you two. Are you alright? Can you move? Anything hurting?" She worried as she helped both the kids sit up right.

Hasib was rocking a nasty bump on his forehead and disorientated but otherwise he seemed relatively unharmed. It was Andria who was whimpering and clutching her arm to her chest. The little girl was tough so whatever was making her curl into a ball had to be painful.

Buttercup gently pried the damaged limb out into the light so she could get a better look as a referee finally arrived on the scene. He hovered nervously over her should as she examined Andria's arm.

It didn't look to bad, not a break. There was some swelling starting to form around her wrist though, a dislocation probably. They could wrap it and she might be able to play, but could Buttercup really do that to her?

"Andria?!" The cry had Buttercup standing to her feet and making way for the little girl's parents to arrive at her side.

The Green Puff took a few steps away as Hasib's parents came and checked him over as well. Like she said, the injuries weren't too serious but they could become worse if left untreated. Now she had a conundrum on her hands.

"What's the call coach?" The referee asked her as he let out a nervous breath and regained some of his professional demeanor.

"Umm…" Buttercup trailed off as she glanced over towards the side.

The scene she saw there had her frozen in her tracks. There, just a few feet away, was Butch and in his arms was little Johnny. The kid looked like he had been hit by speeding truck. There were two black eyes already forming and his nose looked slightly mangled.

Ouch.

Still, that wasn't what made her freeze. It was the expression on Butch's face. Dare she say it? It almost looked…concerned. And that was mega weird.

"Uh, give me one sec please."

The referee nodded and waved her on. "Sure thing, but you've only got another five minutes to decide. Regulation rules."

Buttercup nodded and hesitantly made her way over to her arch nemesis. Butch spotted her coming out of the corner of his eye and frowned. Handing off his player to the kid's parents, he stepped up and met her halfway.

For a moment, the two simply stood in the middle of the field and stared at each other. Then Buttercup drew a deep breath and spoke. And what she was about to say might just have been the hardest thing she had done in a while.

"So ah…how's your kid doing?"

The Ruff shrugged off handedly and avoided her gaze. "He's okay, nothing too serious."

"Yeah, same with mine." She muttered back and drew another deep breath. "Listen, it might not be serious but…I'm pulling them out of the game. I don't want them to get hurt further."

Butch blinked in surprise and looked down at her. "Wha? You're pulling out two of your players? You know what will happen if you do that?"

"Yeah." She sighed.

Even removing one player from her roster left her a player short for a full regulation team. And if she couldn't find an alternate, she forfeited. It sucked, but neither of her kids were in fit condition to play. They could make it but she didn't want to force it on them and make things worse.

This was the best decision…even if it did mean she lost to Butch.

Dammit all.

"But it's for the best. So, congratulations. You and your team win the championship." She just managed to keep a civil tone as she nodded stiffly and then turned to walk away.

"Wait!" A hand on her shoulder stopped her before she could get far however.

The Green Puff turned back and saw an uneasy expression on her counterpart's face. It almost looked like he had swallowed a raw egg. If the situation hadn't been so depressing, she might have smirked. But as it was, all she did was raise a brow.

"…yes?" The brunette asked after a long moment of silence.

Butch released her arm like it was a hot coal and not so subtly wiped his hand on his jersey. "Uh…listen, I uh I don't want Johnny going back out onto the field either and having you lose to me like this is pretty damn cheap if you ask me."

"What are you trying to say?"

It was the brunet's turn to draw a deep breath as his mouth twisted with distaste. "If I'm going to beat you into the ground, I wanna do it the right way. Fair and square. So…I'm pulling Johnny out of the game too. I forfeit."

"You can't do that!" Were the first words out of her mouth.

That was before her brain kicked in. What was she doing? He was giving up too! This meant that he didn't win either. Why the hell was she trying to fight it?

She had no clue.

"I can do whatever I want Butterbutt. And I want to forfeit. So deal." He fired right back and crossed his arms over his chest.

"But-but why? That doesn't make any sense."

"What's there to make sense of? I don't want to put my kids in danger either. I'm their coach, they're my responsibility."

And that made Buttercup pause and look at him. Was he really caring for someone other than himself? Him? Butch? Really? She hadn't misheard or anything? Well…that was different. Not bad though.

Her lips turned into a smile, a genuine one. "I never thought I'd hear something like that come from your mouth."

Butch returned it with a smirk and shrugged again. "You and me both, but these kids do crazy things, like give me a conscience. Ugh."

"Terrible huh?"

"Totally."

Both of them chuckled before she raised her hand to shake and surprisingly enough, Butch grabbed it.

"I'll go inform the ref of our decision. I suppose the league will just have to reschedule the match."

"Well I look forward to kicking your ass for real next time."

"Same here." With that, she left the Green Ruff and made her way back to the referee and her team.

The kids were all gathered around and looking at her anxiously as she stepped up. Buttercup waved to the ref and he went to meet her.

"We're both pulling out our players for safety reasons. The match is forfeit."

He nodded understandingly and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Understood. I'll have to get with the league and see how this pans out. There's a possibility that the championship game might just be nixed due to time constraints."

Buttercup glanced back at Butch to see him surrounded by his kids, laughing as they pestered him. A smile rose on her lips.

"I don't think that'll be too devastating."

"Alright then. Good game coach."

"Thanks."

The ref walked off and Buttercup turned back to her kids. They looked up at her with anxious faces, especially Hasib and Andria.

"Did…did we lose?" The little girl squeaked out.

Buttercup nodded slowly and watched the kid fold into herself.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I know how much you wanted to win." She sniffed tearfully.

Crouching down, Buttercup gave her team a soft smile and patted the poor girl's shoulder. "Don't you even worry about it Andria. You kids and your safety are what's most important. Losing isn't everything right?"

"Right!" A chorus answered her before the children tackled her to the ground.

Laughter echoed across the field and for once, Buttercup fully believed that by losing, she had won everything. And yes, even she knew how cheesy that sounded. But the truth was the truth right?

* * *

**Well here you have it. A special one shot for my other story "Misconception" two year anniversary. I had my readers of that story submit ideas for one shots and this one really stood out to me. I liked the idea of Buttercup and Butch using their aggressive tendencies to do something constructive instead of fighting. **

**I know this story seemed a bit rushed and probably not very fleshed out but I've been a bit pressed for time lately and this was the best I could do. Sorry if anyone was disappointed. I hope you still got a kick out of it. Plus! You can go read my other one shot posted today: A Simple Trip. I think you guys will like it.**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this little fic and it brought a smile to your face. Thanks for a great two years all you Misconceptions readers. And if you haven't read it, I hope this encourages you to do so. It's long but worth it! I promise!**

**Ciao!**


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